Seraphina’s POV
My mind reeled, struggling to process everything happening before me. Caden had come for me. He crossed half the world to find me, wielding his authority like a weapon, and now his icy words echoed in the cold air:
“Kill her.”
Holly’s screams turned shrill, her hands clawing at the ground as she struggled against the bodyguard pinning her down. Her earlier arrogance crumbled into sheer terror.
“No, please! You can’t do this!” she shrieked, tears streaming down her face. “Alpha Caden, I can explain! I was only trying to protect my pack! Please don’t kill me!”
Caden’s expression remained stone-cold, his piercing green eyes filled with disdain as he looked down at her.
“Your pack?” he sneered, his tone dripping with contempt. “You’ve lied, manipulated, and driven your so-called pack into chaos. You don’t deserve to call yourself Luna.”
Holly sobbed, clutching at her hair. “I was doing it for Sid! For the pack!”
Caden ignored her pleas and turned to his bodyguard, his voice cutting like a blade. “Do it quickly.”
“Wait!” I shouted, my voice trembling as I stepped forward.
Caden’s head snapped toward me, his sharp gaze locking onto mine. It was the first time he truly looked at me since he’d arrived.
“What are you doing, Seraphina?” Eason hissed behind me, trying to pull me back.
I shook him off, my heart pounding as I stood between Caden and Holly. “Don’t kill her,” I said, my voice steadier than I felt. “She’s horrible, yes, but she’s not worth this.”
Caden’s brow furrowed, his cold expression softening slightly as he regarded me. “After everything she’s done to you, you’re defending her?”
I glanced at Holly, who looked at me with a mix of fear and disbelief. Her face was smeared with blood—not her own, but from the soldier Caden had shot earlier. Despite everything, she was still someone’s daughter, someone’s sister.
“I’m not defending her,” I said firmly. “I just don’t want more bloodshed. This won’t solve anything.”
The tension in the air thickened as Caden studied me, his jaw tightening. “She tried to kill you, Seraphina. Do you understand that?”
“I do,” I said, meeting his gaze. “But if you kill her now, you’re no better than she is.”
Caden’s lips pressed into a thin line, his green eyes flickering with an emotion I couldn’t decipher.
After a long, agonizing silence, he raised a hand, signaling his bodyguard to stop. The man stepped back, releasing Holly, who collapsed onto the ground, sobbing uncontrollably.
“You’re lucky,” Caden said coldly, his gaze cutting into Holly like a knife. “Not because of anything you deserve, but because Seraphina has a softer heart than I do.”
Holly looked up at him, trembling, her mouth opening and closing like a fish gasping for air.
“But make no mistake,” he continued, his voice deadly. “If I ever hear your name again, it will be the last time.”
With that, he turned his back on her, his attention fully on me now.
“Come here,” he commanded softly, his hand outstretched toward me.
I hesitated for a moment before stepping forward, my heart racing as his fingers closed around mine. His grip was warm and firm, and for the first time in what felt like forever, I felt safe.
Caden guided me toward the helicopter, his presence shielding me from the weight of everything that had just happened.
Eason stood frozen, his expression unreadable as he watched us leave. I wanted to say something to him, but the words wouldn’t come.
Caden helped me into the helicopter, his hand never leaving mine. As the door closed and the roar of the rotors grew louder, I glanced back at the chaos we were leaving behind.
Holly was still on the ground, her sobs drowned out by the wind, while Eason stood tall, his face carved with guilt and sorrow.
The helicopter lifted off, and the snowy landscape of Emerald Howl Pack grew smaller and smaller beneath us.
Caden sat across from me, his piercing eyes locked onto mine.
“You didn’t have to do that,” he said, his voice low. “She didn’t deserve your mercy.”
I looked down at my trembling hands, my voice barely a whisper. “Maybe not. But I couldn’t let you become someone you’re not because of me.”
His gaze softened, and for a brief moment, the hard edges of his demeanor faded.
“You’re wrong,” he said quietly. “For you, I’d become anything.”
His words stole the breath from my lungs, leaving me speechless as the helicopter carried us far away from the nightmare I’d just escaped.
